Aristocratic Elites

From the Republic’s inception to the Western Empire’s demise the aristocratic elite believed they were Rome’s best men and were therefore the only ones truly suited to lead. It was they who rid Rome of the Etruscan Emperor, after which they assumed the mantle of “preservers of [Rome’s] sacred tradition.” Later, like the Greeks, the Roman elite developed a constitutional government, “which paralleled the Greek achievement of rationalizing and secularizing politics and law.” This constitution was not democratic like that of the Greeks; instead, it established a republic and, though there were eventually three assemblies, the Senate, made up of aristocrats, who were appointed for life by consuls who themselves were aristocratic elites, was very much …show more content…
Through these means and others more traditional ways, aristocrats managed to hold power closely, governing Rome “from beginning to end.” For a time during both the Republic and the Empire elites ruled well, though it had little to do with their reverence for rational consideration, which was forced on them by the need to resolve plebian grievances during